  According to Seo, how you shop can be as important as what you buy. It’s important to make your list (and check it twice) before heading out. (QMI Agency) |
Danny Seo is a man with a mission.
Born on Earth Day in 1977, Seo started his first environmental group on his 12th birthday. Earth 2000 was founded with a handful of friends and $23. By the time Seo turned 18, his grassroots group had become the largest teenage activist charity in the U.S.
Today Seo is a leading green lifestyle guru and marketing phenomenon. His partnerships with U.S. retail giant JCPenny, Method Products and Simmons have created everything from eco-friendly cleaning and personal care products to green mattresses. His daily newspaper column, “Do Just One Thing”, is syndicated throughout the U.S., and he lists O Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens and Elle among his many other publishing credits.
What makes Seo unique is his ability to creatively combine sustainability and style. The result is elegant and affordable simplicity – that doesn’t cost the Earth.
I recently had an opportunity to tour one of Toronto’s largest grocery stores with Seo. Our mission - to seek out new ways of living sustainably, without sacrificing convenience or the bottom line.
The Organic Debate
When it comes to organic produce, Seo has three basic rules:
If it’s thin skinned and you eat it whole (such as berries, apples, tomatoes), pay the extra and buy organic, whenever available.
If it’s thick-skinned and it’s peeled before eating, don’t bother.
Given 1 & 2, whenever possible buy organic strawberries, grapes and tomatoes – this includes canned, frozen or processed tomatoes, such as salsa and ketchup.
A Meaty Issue
Eating lower on the food chain is your best bet, but if you can’t live without animal protein in your diet, Seo suggests the following:
Commit to going meatless at least one day a week.
Get to know your protein personally. Buy free-range, locally produced eggs and poultry.
Look for grass-fed, organic red meats.
A fishy story
Whether it’s on land or in the sea, the higher up the food chain the greater the accumulation of toxins. Seo’s best bets:
Bottom feeders such as shellfish.
Avoiding large predator fish such as tuna, endangered and farmed species, and fish that are harvested unsustainably.
Seafood is often considered a more sustainable source of animal protein. But according to The Monterey Aquarium’s Seafood Watch, nearly 75% of the world’s fisheries are either fished to capacity or over-fished.
To help consumers and businesses make sustainable choices for healthy oceans, The Seafood Watch program makes recommendations that are based on how the seafood is fished or harvested. Species are rated as “Best Choices”, “Good Alternatives” or those to “Avoid”, are based on fishery, habitat, species, management, and a host of other factors that affect each species.
For a complete list of what (and what not) to eat, check out the Seafood Watch list at www.montereybayaquarium.org.
Wrapping it all up
Packaging makes up about one-third of our waste stream – a lot of which is non-recyclable. Seo’s advice:
Glass containers are inert and can be reused over and over, eliminating the need to purchase food savers.
Look for post-consumer content in packaging materials.
When it comes to soft drinks, forget about plastic and purchase aluminum cans. Aluminum cans are more likely to be recycled and the material is inert (no leaching of chemicals into beverages!)
Seo’s favorite package – the ice cream cone. It’s completely consumable and delicious!
Food for Thought
According to Seo, how you shop can be as important as what you buy. It’s important to make your list (and check it twice) before heading out. His Top 10 suggestions:
Don’t buy single-use products.
To save energy, fill your freezer to the brim. This not only saves electricity (full freezers run more efficiently) but it saves gas and trips to the grocery store.
Look for organic foods in the frozen food section.
Buy in bulk.
Shop locally.
Buy bread and other baked goodies from local bakeries. The products are fresher and taste better.
Remember that once expired, water filters are considered toxic and must be disposed of as hazardous waste.
Reusable bags must be used at least 13 times in to have less of an environmental impact than lighter weight, single-use plastic bags. Don’t forget to wash your reusable bags to avoid contamination.
From soup to laundry detergents, buy concentrated products. Seo says that the introduction of condensed soups a hundred years ago was revolutionary. It cut the size and weight of packaging in half. “And who wants to pay to ship water?” Manufacturers have been slow to embrace smaller packaging because it limits shelf space – and a chance to catch the eye of busy shoppers!
If you don’t see what you want, ask. It’s an old adage, but it’s still true: The bottom line is that the consumer is always right!
For more information, check out www.dannyseo.com.
